MA Graphic Design and Typography
How the Course is Structured:
MA Graphic Design and Typography is designed to explore and investigate issues and practices in graphic communication, as a means to enhancing professional understanding and academic scholarship in this subject.
The course takes place over a three trimesters, completed within a single calendar year of full-time study, or two years part-time. The modular structure enables equal participation by part-time and full-time students. Full-time students will take two modules per trimester; part-time students take one, enabling both to work together within integrated module groups.
Based upon a combination of self-directed and industrydriven projects, this course builds upon the high standards of student achievement in the established BA (Hons) Graphic Design, which has been characterised by an emphasis towards quality and innovation in typography as well as an inclusive, content-driven approach toward graphic communication in general. The course is designed to challenge preconceived thinking, and to develop innovative approaches to professional practice while enhancing practical expertise and theoretical understanding. Throughout the course the dynamics of creative thinking are developed and considered in relation to the professional, business and social contexts of graphic communication. Student project work is developed through collaboration and dialogue with staff, visiting professionals and fellow students. The programme is designed both for new graduates and established professionals looking to reposition their career portfolio and engage with professional practice at a more advanced strategic level. It also provides for those planning either full-time or complementary careers in design education at undergraduate level. The course enjoys strong links with a range of industry professionals, including contacts with Cambridge University Press, Oxford University Press, ANT Interface design, Sony, and numerous independent design practices and consultants.
Modules
Interpretation and Origination: Modes of Graphic Authorship This module explores the role of self-initiated work in the development and positioning of careers within the graphic design profession and the industries it serves. Seminars and workshops will consider the role of ‘pro-bono’ projects in the public and cultural sectors, and the creative use of designer-driven and self-published outputs in defining and building professional profile. Exploring the wide range of variation in current working relationships between designer and client, this module interrogates the notion of graphic design as ‘service industry’ in relation to the concept of the designer as content provider and strategic consultant. You will undertake an independent socially pro-active graphic project as a means to exploring these issues in relation to your emerging practice as a designer. Typographic Enquiry This module addresses typography as a fundamental element of graphic design, and considers current developments in type use and typeface design in relation to a range of professional contexts. These are explored through detailed investigation of type on the page and the screen, and through the experimental design of custom typefaces.
The module takes a content-driven approach which addresses the topic from a semantic viewpoint. Seminars and lectures consider the relationship between written content and its typographic expression from different perspectives across a range of contexts, from the established disciplines of information design to the interpretative use of typographic structure in managing issues of complexity and ambiguity. Self-initiated Project This module is based around a student-proposed project which may be a ‘live’ brief or a personal investigation designed to explore defined preoccupations and concerns. In either instance, it will demonstrate the constructive analysis and interpretation of a brief or other set of specified objectives, developed through dialogue and the interrogation of method toward a fully realised design outcome. This may address any area of graphic communication in printed or screen-based form, including websites, graphic identities, art-editorial design, publishing and business graphics. Workshops are designed to develop and enhance a critical understanding of different approaches to the creative process. Dissertation This module provides the opportunity for you to demonstrate academic and critical mastery in your subject through a written dissertation of 8,000 words. This would normally address a topic of specific relevance to your own work as a graphic communicator, and thus provides scope for reflection upon personal practice in relation to wider critical and professional contexts. Lectures and seminars consider the role of critical writing and published commentary on design issues within the practice of many leading designers and consultants. Final Major Project Developed in collaboration with your supervising tutor and appropriate outside agencies, the Major Project is designed to test and develop your ability to negotiate, manage and co-ordinate your work to bring a complex sequence of design tasks to a successful conclusion. This project may involve ‘live’ consultancy dialogues alongside the personal exploration of themes and concepts in graphic communication. You will demonstrate the ability to innovate, think strategically and be sensitive to changing cultural and social climates. The module will conclude with an exhibition and online publication of project work.